Epicentre of Bizarre
by Skathi
Summary: What starts out as a normal summer at Grimmauld Place is suddenly turned upside down.
1. Chapter 1

_DISCLAIMER: _As much as I wish I did, I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter. The credit much go to J.K. Rowling._

* * *

_

_It was most certainly a dream, but it was so very strange. The house was full of screaming girls and a few yelling boys. But what had happened to terrify everyone so much? _

_There was a thundering noise from above and an agonized, blood-curdling shriek from below that almost drowned out the other screams throughout the house. Something strange was definitely afoot._

_He threw himself out of bed and leaned out the window and watched as someone in a long black cloak strode away. It was a man; his head was thrown back in laughter as though someone had just told a very funny joke. However, there was something not right about the way he laughed, not pleasant._

_He tore his gaze away from the man walking away from the house and looked at his hands, only to discover that whatever had happened to the rest of the household had happened to him as well. He opened his mouth in a silent shout._

Harry opened his eyes to see the blurry outline of the same old Chudley Cannons poster tacked on the ceiling above his bed. He sighed softly. What a weird dream. What was it? He couldn't quite remember. He watched light poking through the crack between the curtains that covered his window. He knew Mrs. Weasley would soon be calling the residents of the house, permanent and temporary alike, down to breakfast.

A soft groan from across the room told Harry that Ron was almost ready to become conscious again. That didn't mean that he couldn't snuggle a little deeper into his covers for a few more precious moments of comfort.

He stared up at the ceiling for a few moments, watching the blurry images of the Chudley Cannons team zipping about the poster. He itched to play Quidditch himself. Even though Number 12 Grimmauld Place was well protected, it did not have a very large yard and should Harry take his broom and fly off the property, he would risk being seen by muggles and most likely arrested. He couldn't risk that, considering the number of offences he'd already committed.

Pulling his comforter up to his chin, he snuggled deeper into his bed and looked down the length of his bed to his toes. It was at this that he noticed something rather odd. Very odd, as a matter of fact.

It seemed that as Harry slept, someone, presumably a certain Fred and a certain George Weasley, had snuck into his room and attached two round, though not particularly large or heavy, objects to his chest. Harry frowned, he may not have had his glasses on, but he could definitely see two lumps protruding from his upper torso.

He shook his head exasperatedly; this was a very weak joke, in Harry's opinion. He sat up, intending to let the two round things roll off his chest and out from under the tee-shirt he wore to bed. The bulges moved slightly as he sat up, but they did not roll off his body. With a frown, he poked one of them and found it soft and fleshy. How bizarre.

He fumbled nervously for the collar of his tee-shirt, pulled it away from his neck and stared down his shirt, mouth agape. He had- but why did- he was a man for Merlin's sake and men certainly did not grow… THESE!

His fingers trembled as he reached for his glasses. As he shoved them onto his nose, the first things he noticed were his fingers. They were long and slender and… pretty! Terror rose up in his chest- No! He didn't even want to think about his chest. Shaking now from head to toe, he scrambled out of bed and stumbled towards the mirror situated above the dresser he shared with Ron. Terror did not even begin to describe the emotion that he felt looking at his reflection.

In all honesty, his features had not changed all that drastically. He still had the same bright green eyes, his hair was still jet black, he was still skinny and pinched looking. He had the same nose, the same mouth, the same cheeks, even his scar was unchanged and yet, all his features seemed… softer. More gentle. His hair, though still as jet black as it had always been, now fell past his shoulders. He had bangs that fell gently to the sides of his face. He closed his eyes and screwed up his face. He was dreaming. It was a bad dream. Wake up now Harry. He pinched himself hard only to discover that it did indeed hurt. His heart hammered away at his ribcage as he opened his eyes and stared at the girl in the mirror.

"R-R-Ron?" the voice that escaped his lips was not his own, but one in a higher register that sounded only vaguely familiar.

Harry touched his cheek. Now that he looked closer, his features _had_ been altered, if only slightly. He now noticed that his eyebrows weren't as thick as they had been the night before, his lips slightly more prominent and the curve in his nose from its last break was less noticeable. Really, had the circumstances been entirely different, Harry would consider someone that looked like he did now quite pretty.

Unfortunately for him, the circumstances were not different. He was not dreaming, he was indeed standing in front of a mirror looking at himself, or herself, completely changed and not exactly happy about it.

"Ron!" he said again, tearing himself away from the mirror. He stormed frantically over to where Ron was soundly asleep and tore the comforter off the bed. What Harry saw shocked him as much as his own discovery. Lying on Ron's bed, where Ron should have been, was a tall and gangly girl. She had brilliantly red hair that was cut to chin length with bangs that fell to her eye lids. Her pointed face was smattered with freckles. Harry would have been startled by the fact that there was a girl sleeping in the same room as him, but given the situation in which he found himself, he shouldn't have been shocked at all.

"Ron! Wake up!" Harry grabbed the girls shoulder and gave her a firm shake. He suddenly realized how glad he was that Ron did not sleep nude.

The female Ron groaned and opened her eyes blearily, gazing up at Harry.

It took a moment for Ron to realize that this was not Harry shaking him awake, at least not the Harry he knew, but a girl! He scrambled into a sitting position and yanked his sheets up over his body, not wanting to be seen in his pyjamas by a girl. "Wha-wha-wha…" Ron stammered, not noticing the change in his own voice.

"Ron, it's me," a blank stare was the reply. "It's Harry."

Ron squinted at the girl, only now noticing that this girl did indeed have Harry's eyes, glasses, pyjamas and scar. "Harry? Wha- what happened to you?" He still had noticed the changes to himself.

"Same thing that's happened to you, I reckon," Harry replied.

Anxiously, Ron pulled his sheets away from his body and looked down at himself, taking in his own arms, legs and especially his chest.

Ron's yell was somewhat strangled, due to the fact that he was trying to shout like a man in a girl's voice. He leapt out of his bed and stumbled towards the mirror much as Harry had.

Harry allowed Ron the luxury of gazing at his own appearance in terror and in wonder for a few moments before roughly turning the red-head to face him. Ron's eyes were wide with fear and something else. Were those tears? In all the time that Harry had known Ron, Ron had never shed any tears, no matter what. Perhaps their transformation had pumped them full of those… female hormones as well as changing their appearance.

"Listen Ron," Harry said, trying to keep his new voice level. Now that he saw his friend's glassy eyes, he felt a small lump growing in his throat. "We have to stay calm. I'd bet my Firebolt this is Fred n' George's work."

Ron sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly as he fought to get a hold of his fear. "Yeah, probably. But-… how?"

That was an extremely good question and Harry didn't have an answer. He had no idea how the Weasley twins could have gotten himself and Ron to ingest something without anyone noticing. "They've gotta have an antidote or a cure or something."

It was at this particular moment that Harry realized that his boxers were much too large. "Er- let's get dressed first."

It was much easier said than done. Neither Harry nor Ron felt at all comfortable being in the same room as a girl who needed to change clothes. After a good five minutes of struggling to keep their backs facing each other, they eventually decided to take turns. Harry let himself out of the room, letting Ron go first. Uncomfortably, Harry crossed one arm across his chest and used the other hand to hold up his boxers, which he felt were in constant danger of falling down. Nervously, he leaned against the wall, hoping desperately that no one would walk by. Distantly, he heard a loud bellow from the floor above him, but to be honest he didn't much care. No chance that whoever was yelling upstairs had the same problems that he and Ron did.

Ron emerged from the room, wearing a tee-shirt that didn't quite conceal his new chest and a pair of jeans that were too long, and looked much too wide. He looked fairly embarrassed. "I haven't had to wear a belt for a long time," he admitted.

Harry nodded mutely, taking Ron's statement as a piece of advice. He walked into the room and pulled open his designated drawer of the dresser. For one of the very few times in his life, Harry did not know what to wear. He had never exactly thought about it before now. He found that he suddenly had an insight as to why girls cared about how they looked.

Reluctantly, he pulled out a green tee-shirt and a pair of jeans that had once belonged to Dudley. Once he was clothed, belt and all, he realized that he looked even more ridiculous than he did when he was a- er… than he did normally. He sighed, but contented himself with the thought that he and Ron would have this resolved soon.

He opened the door and peeked out into the corridor, making sure that no one else was out there. No one was, not even Ron. Tip-toeing, as though he were a cat burglar, he went into the hallways, closing the door behind him. "Ron?" he whispered.

His ears were met with feet thundering down the stairs. With a strangled squeak, Harry made to throw himself back into his room. Fumbling with the door-knob took only a second too long.

"Harry?"

The voice was male. Harry hoped very much that it was one of the Weasley twins so that he could give them a piece of his female mind. There was no way to hide now. Harry turned slowly to face whomever was addressing him.


	2. Chapter 2

_DISCLAIMER: _As much as I wish I did, I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter. The credit much go to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

For a brief second, Harry thought he was looking at Ron, turned back into his natural state. The thought was dashed upon closer inspection. He looked like a Weasley, with all the characteristic traits, but it wasn't a Weasley that Harry recognized. The boy was tall, though somewhat more stocky than Ron was. His hair was flaming red, messy and grew just past the tops of his ears. He was covered in freckles from head to toe. Harry knew this because the boy was clad only in a tee-shirt that was just long enough to cover what was necessary. The shirt was purple and decorated with gold stars, it fit the boy somewhat too snugly around his chest. 

"Uh… yeah?" Harry squeaked in reply.

"Oh thank Merlin! I thought it was just us," the boy said looking relieved.

Harry studied him for a second longer, "G-Ginny?"

"Hermione! It's okay, it's Harry," the boy-Ginny whispered up the stairs.

Another boy, a few inches shorter than Ginny descended the stairs quietly. He had a thick mop of unmanageable curly brown hair and large brown eyes. He was dressed similarly to Ginny, though his hands were determinedly clamped to the hem of his shirt, keeping it down around his thighs.

"Don't you look nice, Harry," the boy-Hermione said bitterly.

"Harry, we need clothes! Ours don't fit anymore," boy-Ginny said sounding desperate.

Harry nodded in agreement, "Borrow some of mine and Ron's," he opened the bedroom door and ushered them in. "You haven't seen Ron have you? Same thing happened to him."

Both Hermione and Ginny shook their heads, but just then, the door to the hall closet swung slowly open. Girl-Ron stood within it, pink in the face.

"I-I thought I heard someone coming," he said miserably.

Ginny looked as though she were about to laugh, examining her brother's new look, thankfully, she held back. Harry wasn't sure that the female hormones would hold back tears. Apparently, as a girl, Ron was emotionally fragile.

"Go upstairs and get some of our clothes," Hermione said in a hushed voice, "You two look ridiculous."

"And if I hear any comments about my underwear, don't think I won't hurt you just 'cause you're 'girls' now," Ginny said roughly.

Harry and Ron nodded simultaneously; Ginny was now a good few inches taller than both of them and looked like she could inflict pain should she… or he choose to.

Taking care not to make noise, Harry and Ron crept up the stairs to the 'girls' room. So it had happened to Ginny and Hermione too, but once again the question remained; how had Fred and George managed it without anyone noticing?

Ron pushed open the door to the room that Ginny and Hermione stayed in. The first thing Harry noticed was that the room was very tidy. There was a pile of school books stacked neatly next to one of the beds, presumably Hermione's, and the curtains were thrown open, allowing the morning light to stream through. In fact, the room was quite pleasant, though nearly identical to the one Harry and Ron stayed in.

They looked at each other, then at the dresser. Who knew what they would find in the drawers? They approached with extreme caution. Did girls keep anything other than clothes in their dressers? Slowly, Harry pulled open one of the drawers to find it filled with tee-shirts, jumpers and pants that Harry recognized as Ginny's. He released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

Ron, feeling somewhat more confidant that the drawer Harry opened contained nothing horrifying, pulled open another drawer. His face fell. This drawer was filled with undergarments. With an expression that resembled care combined with disgust, he gingerly picked up a bra by the straps between two fingers. "Do we have to?"

Harry shrugged, "I don't plan on going out in public, no one'll know."

Ron nodded, relieved, and picked out a pair of his sister's jeans and an orange tee-shirt, labelled with the Chudley Cannons' logo.

Harry, deciding that Ginny was a bit taller normally than Harry was now, opened a third drawer, finding Hermione's clothes. He couldn't help but feeling extraordinarily awkward as he shifted through his best friends clothes, trying to find something that he would feel comfortable wearing. Eventually, he picked out a pair of black pants and a sky blue tee-shirt. He would have chosen a long sleeved shirt, just to keep himself as covered as he could, but knew that the house had a tendency to get quite warm in the summer.

The girl's clothes bundled in their arms, Harry and Ron stared at each other for a moment. "I'll change in the loo," Ron said finally.


	3. Chapter 3

_DISCLAIMER: _As much as I wish I did, I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter. The credit much go to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Having successfully changed, Harry and Ron tip-toed down the stairs with the utmost caution. Quietly, Harry rapped on the door of his and Ron's bedroom. There was silence. They heard a voice that was obviously trying to sound like Ron, say, "Who is it?" 

"It's us, can we come in?" Harry whispered through the door.

More silence. The door opened a crack to reveal a set of brown eyes that belonged to Ginny. The door opened further and yet not all the way. Harry and Ron slipped into the room. They found Hermione sitting on Ron's bed wearing Harry's clothes. The jeans were a bit big, as they had once belonged to Dudley, but Ron's would have been far too long. Ron sat himself down next to Hermione, careful not to sit too close. Harry, on the other hand, did not sit. He paced the room up and down, hands in his- or Hermione's- pockets.

"How'd they do it?" he asked contemptuously. "I mean, someone would've seen wouldn't they?"

"You'd think we at least would've developed an eye for Fred and George's shenanigans," Ginny said broodingly. "Especially if they got us each individually."

Just then, raucous laughter sounded from next door. From Fred and George's room, it was a fairly normal occurrence, but it was rarely quite as loud at this. Only when they'd cooked up something particularly brilliant. At least from their point of view.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny glanced from one another suspiciously. No doubt the Weasley twins were laughing about the success of their latest prank.

"Cummon," Harry said angrily as he stormed towards the door. Now was as good a time as any to give Fred and George a piece of his mind.

Forgetting their embarrassment over their situation, the others followed him. The door flew open on its own and the four of them trooped out into the hallway. Looking for all the world like the smallest army in the world, they burst into Fred and George's room to be met with a strange sight. Although considering the past hour or so, nothing was that strange.

Two red-headed identical girls were rolling on the floor breathless with laughter. Freckled from head to toe, there was no need to ask who they were.

"Fred! George! What the bloody hell is going on?" Ron burst out angrily.

The twins stopped laughing for only a moment to look up at the four people that had entered their room, before they began shrieking with laughter once more.

"R-Ron! You look darling!" George said through his giggles.

"A-absolutely lovely!" Fred agreed.

"It's not funny!" Ron shouted.

"Yes it is!" the twins said simultaneously.

Nobody could get another word in as the twins were overcome by a fresh bout of hysterical laughter. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny stood shoulder to shoulder, arms folded, glaring daggers at the Weasley twins until finally their mirth faded enough for anything else to be heard.

"_Well?_" Hermione asked threateningly.

"Well what?" asked Fred, ruffling his now shoulder length hair.

"_What the hell is going on!_" Ron asked again, with far more force than before.

The twins snickered, "Brilliant isn't it?" asked George.

"Not the word I'd use," Harry replied.

"Add one drop of this special ingredient and give your friends the shock of their lives!" George cried happily.

"The slogan needs some work," Fred admitted.

"But you get the idea," George added.

"No, actually we don't," Ginny said raising a brow.

"We've been working on it for months!" George said, holding up a small phial of colourless liquid.

"But what _is_ it?" Ron asked.

"Remember fourth year Transfiguration?" George asked, still grinning, despite the fact that he was talking about a class.

Ron and Harry glanced at each other. "Vaguely."

"Remember writing about Cross-species switches? Guinea fowl to guinea pig?" Fred asked, wearing an identical grin to George.

"Sort of."

"This is our own invention," George said, brandishing the phial proudly.

"We modified the idea of a Polyjuice Potion with Cross-species switching spells in mind and viola!" Fred announced.

Hermione raised her brows in surprise, "That is extremely advanced magic," she whispered in awe, seeming to forget the predicament that this advanced magic had gotten her into.

"And it worked!" the twins said joyously.

"How did you remember all the way back to fourth year?" Ginny asked disbelievingly.

"Come now sis- er… brother dear. We pay attention sometimes."

All four of them snorted.

"So you made this potion and snuck into our drinks; how come no one saw you?" Ron asked disdainfully.

"Oh Ronnie, we didn't put it into individual drinks, we put it in the stew last night. Sure we were affected too, but it was a small price to pay," Fred said sounding almost mournful.

"You put it in the stew when mum's back was turned, but why did you eat the stew if you knew what would happen?" Ginny asked, still looking incredulous.

"We love mum's stew, it would've looked suspicious if we didn't."

"Okay, well how long does it last?" Hermione asked.

"Er…"

"YOU DON'T KNOW!?" Ron shrieked loudly enough that Harry though his eardrums would burst.

"Well this was sort of the test run, seeing as it's lasted through the night, we can't really be sure. Could be an hour more, could be a day, could be a week."

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny stared at them open-mouthed. Harry, for one, was shocked that Fred and George would use their pranks without knowing their full effects.

"FRED! GEORGE!" boomed a man's voice from the ground floor.

"Now you're in for it," Ginny said, contempt showing on her face.

The six of them trooped downstairs, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny, trailing behind the twins. They didn't want to give anyone the idea that they were protecting Fred and George.

At the bottom of the stairs stood a short, plump man with flyaway red hair. His fists were propped on his hips as he glared up at the twins.

"Good morning mother!" said Fred.

"Or should we say father?" asked George.

"Don't try and be cute win me!" Mrs (now Mr) Weasley said threateningly. "This time you've gone too far."

"It'll wear off sooner or later mum."

"And you'd best hope that it does before I decide to throttle you both!"

"Threatening your own daughters mum?" Fred asked.

Mrs (now Mr) Weasley grabbed Fred's wrist in one hand and George's in the other and dragged them both into the sitting room. There, they found a tall red-haired woman wearing glasses staring at the floor (their father), a woman with short brown hair that was shot through with grey (Remus Lupin), two redheaded young women, one was shorter than the other with burn scars on her hands, the taller had long hair drawn back in a ponytail (Charlie and Bill) and one other woman whom none of them had to try to recognize. By her bubble gum pink hair, it was obviously Tonks, though she'd stayed for dinner the previous night, she was clearly not affected by the twin's prank. Probably because she was a metamorphmagus.

Tonks seemed to think the whole ordeal was very funny, as she was trying very hard to hide her giggles.

"Care to explain boys uh… girls?" Mr (now Mrs) Weasley asked.

"Not really," George said, looking less and less amused.

"It wasn't an option," Mrs (now Mr) Weasley growled.

Between the two of them, Fred and George relayed the story they had just told Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny. By the end of it, Tonks' face was beet red from trying not to laugh. Harry supposed that had he been in her shoes, he would've found it all hilarious, but on this end it wasn't'.

"Well," Mrs (now Mr) Weasley said through clenched teeth, "As our dear girls haven't any idea when this will end, we'd best just learn to live with it for the time being."

"There's got to be an antidote! I'm not going back to school like _this_!" Ginny exclaimed.

The other Hogwarts students nodded fervently.

"I must agree with her- I mean him… uhm, Ginny. I don't think _anyone_ would want us back at work like this," Charlie agreed.

"Are you suggesting we leave Diagon Alley until this goes away? It might not be until September 1st, or later! No, we're going today, as planned," Mrs Weasley said firmly.

The six that still went to Hogwarts were absolutely shocked by the fact that Mrs Weasley could be so cruel. What if they ran into someone they knew? Begrudgingly, they all headed into the kitchen for breakfast before they left.

"Harry, Ron," Hermione said quietly, lagging behind and beckoning to them.

"Yeah?"

"If we're going out into public, you'd best put on a… bra."

Harry and Ron stared at her dumbstruck. "How can you tell?"

"Trust me, I can tell," she said, moving into the kitchen.

Harry and Ron looked at each other in horror.

"S'pose… s'pose we should get it over with," Harry said forlornly.

Ron nodded mutely and led him upstairs, back into Hermione and Ginny's bedroom.


	4. Chapter 4

_DISCLAIMER: _As much as I wish I did, I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter. The credit much go to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

With mixed terror and hopelessness, they pulled open the drawer that contained under-garments, feeling horrifically uncomfortable. They each selected a bra, though neither had any idea what size they ought to be wearing. The only indication of size was a letter followed by a number, which didn't help at all. 

"How er… how d'you put one of these on?" Ron asked holding his up.

"How should I know?" Harry asked, blushing furiously.

Not bothering to change separately, they turned their backs on each other and began the arduous task of putting on a bra. It was certainly easier said than done. Harry tried several methods before finally figuring out that it was simplest to do the hooks first and then slip the straps over his arms. He also found, disturbingly enough, that Hermione's bra fit him almost perfectly. It was a good thing, as Harry hadn't the faintest notion of how to adjust the thing. "You done?" he asked before turning round.

"Yeah… yeah I am but- uh…"

Harry turned to see that Ron had put his shirt back on, but he looked somewhat… perkier than before, as though his chest had been lifted slightly.

"How come yours doesn't do that?" Ron asked, staring rudely at Harry's chest.

"Dunno, different brand or something."

They returned to the kitchen to find that Fred and George had wolfed down their food as quickly as possible so they would have time to change. Apparently Tonks had allowed them to use her things, as they were slightly closer to her size. Hermione and Ginny looked up at them as they sat down and immediately began chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Ron asked going red in the face.

"Ron, you're wearing a-" Ginny lowered her voice. "Push-up bra."

"What?" Ron asked, alarmed.

"They're for, like, dresses and low-cut stuff," Ginny replied, still keeping her voice low. "Go put on a different one."

"No way am I going through _that_ again," Ron said, folding his arms tightly over his chest and not touching his porridge.

Ginny shrugged, as though to say, you're choice.

They ate in silence, though it seemed that Ron was absolutely against the intake of food in his present condition. Harry knew that he would regret it later. Actually, no he didn't; Harry hadn't the slightest idea whether teenaged girls' stomachs were as bottomless as teenaged boys'.

Fred and George joined them moments later, Fred wearing Tonks' Weird Sister's tee-shirt and George in her Hobgoblin's tee-shirt, looking as though they'd gained back their amusement over the whole ordeal. No one seemed to want to talk to them, so they sat somewhat separate, practising their best haughty girl glares on each other and occasionally breaking out into a fit of giggles.

"I really don't see why you find this so funny," Hermione said finally, slamming her spoon onto the table with much more force than she meant to.

They gave her identical bewildered stares. "Look at it from our point of view Hermione."

"I'm finding that rather difficult to do," she said under her breath.

The door to the kitchen creaked open and Harry looked up, expecting to see Mrs Weasley telling them that they would be leaving for Diagon Alley in a few moments. However, Harry would've preferred Mrs Weasley telling them they would be staying a week in Diagon Alley in their present conditions compared to who was standing in the door frame. Looking slightly stunned, hand still on the door knob stood Professor Snape.

For a horrifying moment, Harry, Hermione and the Weasley's stared up at him, spoons half way into their mouths as he stared back. Harry made to say something, but the words stuck in his throat and all that came out was an odd squeaking noise.

Snape eyed each of them individually then, as if him being here wasn't terrifying enough, his thin lips twisted into a smile and a strange, cold noise emanated from his throat. Harry didn't realize right away that Snape was laughing. It took them all by surprise, as they'd never even imagined, let alone seen, Snape laughing.

Harry felt his face burning with embarrassment and anger. What right did _he_ have to be here? Especially now.Harry didn't have even the slightest bit of doubt in his mind that Snape would bring this up at every opportunity. Assuming that they ever got out of this.

Still laughing, Snape turned on his heel without a word and left the kitchen, presumably in search of the Order members. Wouldn't he be in for another surprise.

An odd silent buzzing filled the kitchen. If Snape hadn't believed his own eyes walking in on them eating breakfast, it was nothing compared to how every Hogwarts student would feel had they just seen Snape express any form of amusement.

"That was…" George began, but he seemed at a loss for words.

"Yeah," Ginny agreed.

"All done then?" Mrs Weasley asked, bustling into the kitchen. She waved her wand, the dishes vanishing before their very eyes. "Off to the fireplace then."

Harry leapt to his feet, remembering something very important. "Er, Mrs Weasley?"

"Harry?"

"Er, well uh- it's my scar," his hand automatically went to his forehead. "If people see it-"

"Oh yes, of course dear. Come here," she withdrew her wand from the pocket of her robes.

Harry stepped closer, wondering if Mrs Weasley was about to perform some complicated spell that would make his scar invisible. If she was, Harry would be sure to remember it.

He hadn't really expected Mrs Weasley to gather up his grown out bangs between her fingers, draw her wand across them, neatly shearing them just short enough to fall to his brows, successfully covering his scar.

"There you are dear," she said admiring her handy-work. "I think that ought to cover it up nicely."

"Thanks," Harry mumbled, realizing now that he would definitely have to go to Diagon Alley. He followed the others into the salon, where Fred and George were already taking a handful of Floo Powder each. Harry dipped his hand into the flower pot, which had come from Weasley's home, containing the Powder and watched as Fred tossed his handful into the flames of the fireplace.

"Diagon Alley!" Fred said clearly, stepping into the now emerald flames before he was whipped away.

"Wonder where Sirius is," Harry suddenly wondered out loud, realizing that he hadn't seen his godfather all morning.

"Dunno," Ron answered. "Reckon he's realized what's happened?"

"How could he not?" Hermione snapped, plainly still irritable. Frankly, Harry couldn't blame her; in fact, he had no idea why he wasn't snippier himself.

Just then, a large black dog came trotting into the salon. The dog seemed to survey each of them, sniffing and examining.

"'Lo Sirius," Harry said, turning a bit pink in the face.

Fluidly, the dog changed, not into the man they knew, but into a tall, dark-haired and rather pretty woman. "And I thought it was just me."

George tried to hide a snort of laughter, earning a death glare from Sirius.

"I should've known," Harry heard him mutter under his breath. Sirius, about to leave, did a sort of double take, realizing that they each held a handful of Floo Powder. "You're not going anywhere?"

"Diagon Alley," Ron replied with an audible sigh.

"But- but… you're girls!" Sirius spluttered incredulously.

At this, Hermione and Ginny simultaneously gave a short, and obviously indignant, cough.

"Whatever. You can't go out," Sirius said insistently.

"So you'd rather they didn't get their school supplies and fail all their classes at school then Sirius?" Mrs Weasley said.

Harry very much wished that he could obey Sirius and lock himself in his room until this wore off. He also knew that Mrs Weasley was quite right. Though he supposed Snape would be pleased if he showed up for Potions without any ingriedent or books, it would be a great excuse to put him in detention until he got what he needed. Perhaps longer.

One by one, they tossed their handfuls of Floo Powder into the fire and vanished in a whirl of emerald green flames. Harry had never liked travelling by Floo, but at the moment, it was a right sight better than spending more time in public than necessary. Besides, the Knight Bus was much worse anyways.


	5. Chapter 5

_DISCLAIMER: _As much as I wish I did, I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter. The credit much go to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

The moment they had all gathered before the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron, Mrs. Weasley chivvied them into an unoccupied corner where they wouldn't be overhead. 

"Right," she said. "We all ought to think up fake names, just in case someone asks. Harry?"

Taken by surprise, Harry said the first name that popped into his head, "Haley Porter." The moment he said it, he knew he should've thought up a better one, as 'Haley Porter' was almost ludicrously close to his real name. On the other hand, the only other names that were coming to mind were 'Hermione' and 'Ginny'.

"Haley," Mrs. Weasley said thoughtfully. "Alright. Hermione?"

"Henry Shepherd," Hermione said without faltering. It was almost like she had been thinking about it previously.

The Weasleys became the Meadlys. Molly became Marvin, Ginny became Gregory, Ron became Veronica and Fred and George became Frieda and Georgiana.

"Right then," said Marvin Meadly with an air of forced confidence. "Don't forget your names and _stick together! _We'll get through this."

Almost the moment they stepped on the street of Diagon Alley, a large group of foreign witches rushed past them, successfully splitting up Ron, Harry, Hermione and Ginny from Mrs. Weasley, Fred and George.

"Stick together eh?" Ron grumbled. He stood on his toes in an attempt to spot the rest of his family, but they had already vanished into the crowds. "What now?"

"S'pose- s'pose we should get our stuff then?" Harry said uncertainly.

"Yeah, s'pose we ought to," Hermione agreed, wringing her hands nervously.

The four of them set off together down the street, keeping their eyes open for Mrs. Weasley. The first store they came to was Flourish and Blotts, the book store. Together, the four of them scurried up the stairs into the section marked _Hogwarts_ and hurriedly pulled all the books they needed off the shelves, paid and scurried back out.

"Wha-what next?" Ron panted, heaving his bag of spell books onto his shoulder.

"The Apothecary, I'm short on beetle eyes," Hermione said thoughtfully.

"I doubt having all our ingredients will matter much if we show up to Potions like this," Harry grumbled.

Hermione glared at Harry, "Don't you need Malacaw claw? _Haley?_"

"Let's just go! Arguing won't help," Ginny groaned.

Harry and Hermione glared at each other for a moment longer before being dragged towards the Apothecary by Ron and Ginny.

"Alright, you two get the Malacaw claw and Hermione and I will get the beetle eyes," Ginny said, deciding to take charge.

"Wish we could've given up Potions this year," Ron muttered wistfully.

"Me too. I definitely won't be taking it next year," Harry said firmly.

"Nor me," Ron agreed.

Together, they sifted through shelved boxes of everything from bat dandruff to Nundu bristles (which were extremely expensive) but could not immediately find anything having to do with Malacaw's.

"Should we ask the bloke who runs this place?" Ron asked nervously.

"Dunno," Harry said.

"Can I help you ladies?" came a cool voice from behind them.

Neither Harry nor Ron had heard anyone approach them and the surprise caused Ron to knock over a box of runespoor fangs.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," Draco Malfoy drawled.


End file.
